Sometimes when a creative idea is developed for a campaign an immediate “YES” is shouted from the roof tops because the idea seems so simple and yet so powerful.  This of course happens everyday at H&K because we are so brilliant :-).  It recently happened with my colleagues who work with International Business Wales (IBW) when they had an idea for an amazing campaign leveraging the 100-year history of rugby test matches between Australia and Wales. 

IBW was looking to further raise its awareness in the Australian market and build a profile for its newly appointed head of Australia & New Zealand efforts, Gareth Davies.  H&K devised a creative communications strategy to play on both the sporting and business elements of Davies' background, who was a former captain of the Welsh rugby team and British Lion in the 1980s, and a prominent business personality in Wales.

H&K conducted in-depth research into Wales' and Australia's rugby history to create the James Bevan Trophy, a prize named after the first captain of Wales' test rugby side who was born and raised in Australia.  The idea was pitched to both the Australian Rugby Union and Welsh Rugby Union as a celebration of 100 years of test history between the two countries and as a future trophy to be played for each time Australia and Wales meet.

The Trophy was launched in Wales and officially unveiled at a press conference in Sydney, followed by a networking lunch with high profile business and sporting personalities and Australian media.  The unveiling resulted in a host of articles that were generated in both the Australian and Welsh markets (some driven by great visuals of the trophy and players with the Opera House providing a great backdrop).  As a result, Gareth Davies' profile increased ten-fold in the Australian market, with Davies also receiving invitations to be involved on Pay TV and sports opinion pages.  The business lunch resulted in forging key relationships with prospects and target business and sporting publications.

So next time you are developing a campaign for a client, take a look at any tradition or heritage you can leverage to capture a moment of time to use as a platform for your efforts.  You may soon be screaming your own “YES” with an idea that delivers a central message so well that you’ll pack up work early that day and head to the beach.

(Photo L-R: Aled Brew, Wales Rugby Union player; Ron Graham - Vice President, Australia Rugby Union; Glanmor Griffiths, President Welsh Rugby Union; Gareth Davies, IBW; John Eales, former Wallaby captain; Gareth Williams - Wales Rugby Union player)